Boxoffice (Jul-Sep 1938)

FORECASTS "FACE LIFTING" FOR MAIN STREET Harmonious rows of shops with lights streaming softly through colored glass facades will replace the present jumble of irregular fronts, discordant signs and confusing lights on “America’s Main Street of 1950,” according to H. M. Alexander, architect of the Libbey-Owens-Ford Glass Company, who painted a dramatic picture of “The Main Street of Tomorrow” at the annual meeting of the Society of Illuminating Engineers held in Minneapolis recently. Mr. Alexander said he believed that through a greater use of structural glass, which can be lighted from behind and is adaptable to sandblasted designs, the main streets of America will receive a general face-lifting in the next decade, which would put the unsightly signs and confusing lights into the obscurity now enjoyed by the cigar-store Indian and the old-fashioned barber pole. “Lights will stream softly through colored glass facades,” he predicted, “and the after-dinner shopper walking along the street will sense a feeling of repose. Likewise, individual structures such as the town hall, library and fire house, will be bathed in a flood of colored light. The ‘Main Street of Tomorrow’ will present the shopper or visitor with an arresting and yet tasteful spectacle because the architecture of the stores and offices will have a common denominator, and will constitute a streamlined advertisement of the goods or services obtainable inside.” He pointed out that the addition of luminous fronts, which are high in eyestimulus and attraction value, greatly increases the night-time appearance of the locality and are a valuable aid to increased business. Examples were presented to show that where such improvements have been made, in each case sales in Four Star Performance The Year ’Round install ^ STABILARC Motor Generators ^ AUTODRAPE Curtain Machines * SILENT STEEL Curtain Track ^ S T E E L I T E Curtain Track AUTOMATIC DEVICES CO. 737 Hamilton St. Allentown, Pa. Export Office 220 W. 42nd St., N. Y. C. creases for the businesses affected have run as high as 50 to 100 per cent over the period preceding modernization. “The uses of the luminous area in storefront design are practically unlimited,” Mr. Alexander stated. “It is of value to every store that is actively engaged in merchandising and to those whose business depends to some extent on promoting the name of the merchant’s product, or a short advertising message. Naturally, luminous storefronts are most acceptable for those buildings that are open during the evening. “Some of the businesses found in this group are drug stores, delicatessen stores, ice cream parlors, restaurants, and gasoline stations. In many cases the hourly proportion of their business is higher at night than during the day. Their need for the eye-arresting value of luminous areas is unquestionable. Another important group includes bars and cocktail lounges, hotels, theatres and amusement houses. For this group, whose greatest business is at night and who have few products to display, luminous fronts are particularly effective because they invite the prospective customer on the street to enter immediately,” he said. It was pointed out, moreover, that luminous storefronts are a valuable addition to any business establishment, whether it enjoys night business or not, for these fronts are also beautiful in the day-time and when seen at night provide a powerful stimulus for future buying as the “window-shoppers” stroll by. “Over and above the purely commercial aspects, however,” he said, “is the fact that luminous storefront areas, better street lighting and improved traffic conditions transform a commonplace business street into a thoroughfare of which the citizens of the city may well be proud.” Mr. Alexander said he believed that by 1950 the Main Streets of American cities and towns will be as attractive as the residential districts which have been vastly improved by means of community zoning regulations. “The luminous storefront, a thing of beauty, will rid our cities of a great deal of unsightly unattractive present architecture,” he concluded. Buchanan Directs Sales On New Push-Back Chair The Kroehler Manufacturing Company has announced the appointment of B. B. Buchanan as director of sales of their seating division, recently formed for the purpose of marketing the new Kroehler “Push Back” seat. Buchanan is widely known throughout the theatre industry, having been identified for many years with the construction and outfitting of fine theatres throughout the country. The new Kroehler theatre seat is now in production and is available in several interesting and distinctive models. “Movies Are Your Best Entertainment,” but we still maintain that a modern movie is not very entertaining in a ramshackle, run-down theatre. It’s the old “silk pursesow’s ear” situation. MOHAWKS ARE [oNO'ljVED Coo Every day is "Parade Day” up and down your aisles! And you know that the bigger the box office — the bigger the wear and tear on your carpeting! Mohawk knows it, too! That’s why Mohawk builds extra stamina and long life into every foot of Mohawk Theater Carpets. Colors, textures, weaves — let your carpet fancy roam as it will — you’ll find exactly what you want in the Mohawk line. For instance, those popular favorites — Rialto, Scotia, and the Broadway group — are born actors. Beneath their smart appearance, their sound-absorbing pile — lies the ability to take a lot of punishment. Mohawk’s are real troopers. MOHAWK CARPET MILLS 295 FIFTH AVENUE, NEW YORK REGIONAL SALES OFFICES PHILADELPHIA BOSTON LOS ANGELES CHICAGO HIGH POINT ST. LOUIS DETROIT SAN FRANCISCO DALLAS BOXOFFICE :: September 17, 1938 69